Employment Discrimination Lawsuits by State: Federal Filings per Capita
Original analysis of 300,607 records from the Federal Judicial Center, FY2006–FY2025 (federal fiscal years, Oct–Sep). Published October 14, 2026.
We counted the 17,989 employment discrimination cases filed in U.S. district courts in fiscal 2025, assigned the 17,945 filed in the 50 states and DC to their state by court district and divided by Census population.
What the federal court filings show
Among the 50 states, Pennsylvania had the most federal employment discrimination lawsuits per capita in fiscal 2025: 11.7 cases per 100,000 residents (1,528 cases), 2.2× the rate for the 50 states and DC combined (5.3). Illinois (10.5) and Alabama (9.4) followed; Vermont had the lowest rate at 0.9. The District of Columbia, listed separately, recorded 35.2 per 100,000 residents.
- 11.7Suits per 100,000 residents in Pennsylvania, FY2025
- 5.3Suits per 100,000 residents, 50 states and DC, FY2025
- 17,989Federal job discrimination suits filed, FY2025
Pennsylvania ranks first
Pennsylvania recorded 11.7 employment discrimination filings per 100,000 residents in fiscal 2025, the highest rate of the 50 states, and also the highest average over fiscal 2021–2025 (11.9).
A wide spread between states
The top rate is 12.6× the lowest, Vermont at 0.9. The median state recorded 4.2 filings per 100,000 residents; 16 of the 50 states were above the combined rate of 5.3.
State size does not decide the rate
California had the most cases in absolute terms (1,719) but 4.4 per 100,000 residents, and Texas 3.8, both below the combined rate. Pennsylvania and Illinois, the fifth and sixth most populous states, rank first and second; New York (6.2) and Florida (5.4) are above the combined rate.
Filings rose to a 20-year high
The 17,989 cases filed in fiscal 2025 were 8.7% more than in fiscal 2024 (16,552) and the most in any year of our series since fiscal 2006. The low point was fiscal 2022 with 12,168 cases.
Reopened cases do not change the leader
Like the federal judiciary's own statistics, our count includes 599 reopened cases nationally in fiscal 2025. Without them, Pennsylvania still ranks first at 10.7 per 100,000 residents.
Which States Have the Most Employment Discrimination Lawsuits per Capita
The ranking divides each state's federal employment discrimination filings in fiscal 2025 by its Census population on July 1, 2025.
Pennsylvania (11.7), Illinois (10.5) and Alabama (9.4) had the highest rates per 100,000 residents among the 50 states; the District of Columbia recorded 35.2.
A state's rate counts every case commenced in its federal district courts under nature-of-suit codes 442 (civil rights: employment) and 445 (Americans with Disabilities Act: employment). These are the categories the federal judiciary reports as employment cases in its Table C-2. The District of Columbia is listed but not ranked: the U.S. government was the defendant in 32% of its 244 cases, against 2.0% in the 50 states, so its rate does not measure local employers alone.
Single-year rates in small states rest on few cases: Vermont recorded 6. The CSV adds the average rate over fiscal 2021–2025 for each state, which smooths such swings. On that measure Pennsylvania also ranks first at 11.9.
Federal employment discrimination suits per 100,000 residents, FY2025
| State | Rate | Cases | 5-yr avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 35.2 | 244 | 34.4 |
| Pennsylvania | 11.7 | 1,528 | 11.9 |
| Illinois | 10.5 | 1,334 | 7.2 |
| Alabama | 9.4 | 488 | 8.1 |
| Kansas | 8.8 | 261 | 7.0 |
| Georgia | 8.4 | 945 | 6.5 |
| Mississippi | 8.3 | 245 | 7.4 |
| Nevada | 7.9 | 260 | 5.6 |
| Indiana | 7.9 | 550 | 6.5 |
| New Jersey | 6.5 | 617 | 5.4 |
| Rhode Island | 6.3 | 70 | 4.9 |
| New York | 6.2 | 1,232 | 5.6 |
| Arkansas | 5.7 | 176 | 4.5 |
| Connecticut | 5.6 | 206 | 5.5 |
| South Carolina | 5.6 | 310 | 4.9 |
All 50 states and DC
| State | Rate | Cases | 5-yr avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 5.4 | 1,269 | 4.4 |
| Tennessee | 5.4 | 395 | 5.1 |
| Louisiana | 5.0 | 231 | 4.7 |
| Missouri | 4.8 | 302 | 4.7 |
| Oklahoma | 4.6 | 188 | 4.0 |
| Maryland | 4.5 | 285 | 4.2 |
| Ohio | 4.5 | 541 | 4.2 |
| California | 4.4 | 1,719 | 3.5 |
| Colorado | 4.3 | 260 | 3.7 |
| Kentucky | 4.3 | 196 | 3.5 |
| Delaware | 4.2 | 45 | 6.3 |
| Michigan | 4.2 | 423 | 3.6 |
| Virginia | 3.8 | 337 | 3.4 |
| Texas | 3.8 | 1,200 | 3.0 |
| Washington | 3.5 | 281 | 2.6 |
| North Carolina | 3.5 | 389 | 2.9 |
| Oregon | 3.4 | 146 | 4.2 |
| New Hampshire | 3.3 | 47 | 2.9 |
| Utah | 3.2 | 115 | 2.3 |
| Nebraska | 3.0 | 60 | 2.7 |
| Arizona | 3.0 | 225 | 2.8 |
| West Virginia | 2.9 | 52 | 2.6 |
| Alaska | 2.8 | 21 | 1.8 |
| Maine | 2.7 | 38 | 2.4 |
| Massachusetts | 2.7 | 191 | 2.0 |
| Hawaii | 2.6 | 37 | 3.6 |
| Minnesota | 2.4 | 140 | 2.2 |
| Wisconsin | 2.2 | 131 | 1.7 |
| South Dakota | 2.1 | 20 | 2.2 |
| North Dakota | 2.1 | 17 | 1.1 |
| New Mexico | 2.1 | 44 | 1.9 |
| Idaho | 2.0 | 41 | 1.5 |
| Iowa | 1.9 | 62 | 1.6 |
| Wyoming | 1.7 | 10 | 2.3 |
| Montana | 1.3 | 15 | 1.3 |
| Vermont | 0.9 | 6 | 1.2 |
Fiscal 2025 runs from October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025. Rate = cases per 100,000 residents (Census estimate for July 1, 2025). 5-yr avg = rate for fiscal 2021–2025 combined.
Which States Have the Most Employment Discrimination Lawsuits in Total
Raw counts largely follow population. The per-capita order differs: Pennsylvania and Illinois are among the most populous states and also have the highest rates, while California and Texas fall below the combined rate.
California had the most federal employment discrimination filings in fiscal 2025 (1,719), followed by Pennsylvania (1,528) and Illinois (1,334).
Totals do not account for the size of a state's population or workforce. They show where the federal caseload sits, which matters for courts and for firms that handle these cases. The per-capita ranking above adjusts for population, not for the number of employed people.
Federal employment discrimination cases filed by state, FY2025
- California1,7194.4 per capita rate
- Pennsylvania1,52811.7 per capita rate
- Illinois1,33410.5 per capita rate
- Florida1,2695.4 per capita rate
- New York1,2326.2 per capita rate
- Texas1,2003.8 per capita rate
- Georgia9458.4 per capita rate
- New Jersey6176.5 per capita rate
- Indiana5507.9 per capita rate
- Ohio5414.5 per capita rate
All 50 states and DC
- Alabama4889.4 per capita rate
- Michigan4234.2 per capita rate
- Tennessee3955.4 per capita rate
- North Carolina3893.5 per capita rate
- Virginia3373.8 per capita rate
- South Carolina3105.6 per capita rate
- Missouri3024.8 per capita rate
- Maryland2854.5 per capita rate
- Washington2813.5 per capita rate
- Kansas2618.8 per capita rate
- Nevada2607.9 per capita rate
- Colorado2604.3 per capita rate
- Mississippi2458.3 per capita rate
- District of Columbia24435.2 per capita rate
- Louisiana2315.0 per capita rate
- Arizona2253.0 per capita rate
- Connecticut2065.6 per capita rate
- Kentucky1964.3 per capita rate
- Massachusetts1912.7 per capita rate
- Oklahoma1884.6 per capita rate
- Arkansas1765.7 per capita rate
- Oregon1463.4 per capita rate
- Minnesota1402.4 per capita rate
- Wisconsin1312.2 per capita rate
- Utah1153.2 per capita rate
- Rhode Island706.3 per capita rate
- Iowa621.9 per capita rate
- Nebraska603.0 per capita rate
- West Virginia522.9 per capita rate
- New Hampshire473.3 per capita rate
- Delaware454.2 per capita rate
- New Mexico442.1 per capita rate
- Idaho412.0 per capita rate
- Maine382.7 per capita rate
- Hawaii372.6 per capita rate
- Alaska212.8 per capita rate
- South Dakota202.1 per capita rate
- North Dakota172.1 per capita rate
- Montana151.3 per capita rate
- Wyoming101.7 per capita rate
- Vermont60.9 per capita rate
Per capita rate = cases per 100,000 residents (Census estimate for July 1, 2025).
How Many Employment Discrimination Lawsuits Are Filed Each Year
The national series counts both employment codes in all federal district courts, including the territories, by fiscal year.
Federal courts received 17,989 employment discrimination cases in fiscal 2025: 14,564 under the civil rights employment code and 3,425 under the ADA employment code. The previous high in our series was fiscal 2012 with 16,973.
Our count matches the federal judiciary's published totals within a fraction of a percent (see methodology). The series starts in fiscal 2006, the first full fiscal year in which ADA employment cases had their own code; earlier years are not comparable. The national figure includes 44 cases filed in Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands, which are not part of the state ranking.
Federal employment discrimination cases filed per fiscal year
- 202517,9893,425 ADA employment
- 202416,5523,021 ADA employment
- 202314,7332,568 ADA employment
- 202212,1682,116 ADA employment
- 202114,4332,627 ADA employment
- 202013,5212,339 ADA employment
- 201915,0402,562 ADA employment
- 201815,2092,626 ADA employment
- 201714,4492,364 ADA employment
- 201614,1122,229 ADA employment
All fiscal years since 2006
- 201514,2642,071 ADA employment
- 201413,8191,893 ADA employment
- 201315,2441,943 ADA employment
- 201216,9731,959 ADA employment
- 201116,9011,765 ADA employment
- 201016,0651,518 ADA employment
- 200915,1781,197 ADA employment
- 200814,2841,094 ADA employment
- 200714,3851,036 ADA employment
- 200615,288985 ADA employment
Fiscal years end September 30. Fiscal 2026 is incomplete in the current data release and is not shown.
Download the Data and Cite This Study
Every table on this page as a CSV file, free to reuse with attribution (CC BY 4.0).
- Federal employment discrimination lawsuits by state and fiscal year, FY2021-FY2025Cases commenced, reopened cases, Census July 1 population and per-capita rate for each state and DC in each fiscal year FY2021-FY2025. · 255 rows · CSV, 10 KB
- Federal employment discrimination lawsuits by state, FY2025, per capitaEmployment and ADA employment cases commenced in federal district courts by state (50 states and DC), Oct 2024 - Sep 2025, with Census population, per-capita rates, the rate excluding reopened cases and the FY2021-FY2025 average rate. · 51 rows · CSV, 3 KB
- Federal employment discrimination lawsuits filed nationally by fiscal yearEmployment and ADA employment cases commenced in all U.S. district courts per federal fiscal year, FY2006-FY2025, with cases repeated in two FJC tape years counted once. · 20 rows · CSV, 1 KB
How to cite
Goldberg, L. (2026). Employment Discrimination Lawsuits by State — Federal Filings per Capita (FY2006–FY2025) [Data set]. Settlement Insight. https://settlementinsight.com/research/employment-discrimination-lawsuits-by-state
BibTeX
@dataset{goldberg_2026_employment_discrimination_lawsuits_by_state,
author = {Goldberg, Leonard},
title = {Employment Discrimination Lawsuits by State --- Federal Filings per Capita (FY2006--FY2025)},
year = {2026},
publisher = {Settlement Insight},
url = {https://settlementinsight.com/research/employment-discrimination-lawsuits-by-state}
}How We Measured
Checked against published figures
- Civil rights - employment cases (nature of suit 442) commenced in U.S. district courts, FY2025 (Oct 1, 2024 - Sep 30, 2025): published 14,540, our count 14,564 (0.17% apart).Table C-2. U.S. District Courts - Civil Cases Commenced, by Basis of Jurisdiction and Nature of Suit, 12-Month Periods Ending September 30, 2024 and 2025
- ADA - employment cases (nature of suit 445) commenced in U.S. district courts, FY2025: published 3,422, our count 3,425 (0.09% apart).Table C-2. U.S. District Courts - Civil Cases Commenced, by Basis of Jurisdiction and Nature of Suit, 12-Month Periods Ending September 30, 2024 and 2025
- Civil rights - employment cases (nature of suit 442) commenced in U.S. district courts, FY2024 (Oct 1, 2023 - Sep 30, 2024): published 13,526, our count 13,531 (0.04% apart).Table C-2. U.S. District Courts - Civil Cases Commenced, by Basis of Jurisdiction and Nature of Suit, 12-Month Periods Ending September 30, 2024 and 2025
Full method and limits of the data
We count cases filed in U.S. district courts under nature-of-suit code 442 (civil rights: employment) and 445 (Americans with Disabilities Act: employment), by filing date and federal fiscal year (October through September). As in the judiciary's statistics, a case that is reopened or transferred in counts again in the year it is commenced; reopened cases make up 3.3% of fiscal 2025 filings, and the CSV gives every state's rate with and without them. The FJC release lists some cases in two tape years (the same circuit, district, office, docket number, filing date and origin under two values of tapeyear); we count each such case once and keep the row from the newest tape year.
Each district court is assigned to its state; states with several districts are summed. Rates are cases per 100,000 residents, using the population estimate for July 1 that falls inside the fiscal year. For calibration we recomputed the national totals the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts publishes in Table C-2: our count of code 442 cases for fiscal 2025 is 14,564, against 14,540 published; for code 445 it is 3,425, against 3,422.
What this data cannot tell you
- These are federal lawsuits only. Discrimination claims filed in state courts, with state fair employment agencies or as charges with the EEOC are not included unless they became a federal lawsuit. Differences between states partly reflect how often plaintiffs choose federal over state court.
- A case is counted where it is filed, which is usually but not always where the job was located. Suits against federal agencies and national employers can be filed in the District of Columbia or the employer's home district.
- Rates are per resident, not per worker; states with older populations or lower employment have fewer potential plaintiffs per resident. The data show filings, not whether discrimination occurred: many cases are dismissed or settle.
- Federal courts report new cases with some delay, and the FJC updates earlier years in later releases. Counts for fiscal 2025 may still rise slightly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which state has the most employment discrimination lawsuits?
In absolute numbers, California had the most federal employment discrimination cases in fiscal 2025 (1,719). Per resident, Pennsylvania ranked first among the 50 states with 11.7 cases per 100,000 residents.
How many employment discrimination lawsuits are filed each year?
Federal district courts received 17,989 employment discrimination cases in fiscal 2025, which ended September 30, 2025, up from 16,552 a year earlier. That count includes 3,425 cases under the Americans with Disabilities Act's employment provisions.
Which state has the fewest discrimination lawsuits per capita?
Vermont had the lowest rate of the 50 states in fiscal 2025, 0.9 federal employment discrimination cases per 100,000 residents (6 cases). Rates in small states can change considerably from year to year.
Why does the District of Columbia have such a high rate?
The District of Columbia recorded 35.2 cases per 100,000 residents. The U.S. government was the defendant in 32% of its 244 cases, against 2.0% in the 50 states, so we list it separately from the state ranking.
Does this include EEOC charges?
No. The figures count lawsuits filed in federal district courts. Charges filed with the EEOC or state agencies and lawsuits filed in state courts are separate counts and are not included.
Sources
- Integrated Database (IDB): civil cases filed, terminated and pending — Federal Judicial Center
- State Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2025 (Vintage 2025) — U.S. Census Bureau
- Table C-2. U.S. District Courts – Civil Cases Commenced, by Basis of Jurisdiction and Nature of Suit, September 30, 2025 — Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
- Civil Codebook, 1988 Forward — Federal Judicial Center
- Independent analysis. Settlement Insight is not a law firm and not affiliated with any agency named here. Analysis by Leonard Goldberg, Editor. How we work: methodology, our data.
More Research and Data
Other studies from our database of public legal records — each with free CSV downloads.
Related research
Latest studies
- Class action attorney feesJudges gave class action lawyers a median 25% of the settlement fund in the fee orders we read
- Driver-Assistance ComplaintsTesla and Honda (incl. Acura): 41% of driver-assistance complaints to NHTSA, 2021–2025
- Federal takings payouts76.5% of Judgment Fund takings payouts went to claims against the Surface Transportation Board
- No FEAR Act payments by agency$349.9 million paid to federal workers in discrimination cases, FY2009–FY2025